Why Fluoropolymer Coatings
- Chemically Stable: Due to the strong carbon-fluorine bonds in fluoropolymers, these coatings are very stable and non-reactive. They are also resistant to most chemicals, which makes them a good barrier against corrosion in industrial processing equipment.
- Non wetting/ non-stick: Fluoropolymer coatings have excellent nonwetting properties; they are oleophobic and hydrophobic. Low surface energy that is unique to these coatings helps water bead formation instead of deposition, which means easier cleanup.
- Wide Temperature Range: Our fluoropolymer coatings work for continuous operating temperatures in the range of -30°C to 260°C.
- Wear resistant: Due to their low coefficient of friction, fluoropolymer coatings are beneficial for ducts or vessels carrying sticky fluids or slurry. They can also act as dry lubricant to prevent wear of contacting metal parts.
- Robust under pressure: Ami polymer's coatings have worked from vacuum to high pressure applications.
Properties
Physical properties of Fluoropolymers:
Application Process
Polymer coating process involves the below main steps:
- Surface Preparation : The area to be coated is cleaned thoroughly to remove any dirt, oil, grime etc. An appropriate roughness is then created on the surface by methods such as grit blasting etc. This is critical to enable the coating to adhere properly to the surface.
- Application: The coating usually comprises three layers: primer, midcoat and topcoat. Powder coatings are applied either by electrostatic coating or through a fluidized bed process. Liquid coatings may be applied by several methods. Both water and solvent based coatings can be air sprayed by suction gun or from a pressure pot. In jobs where large numbers of small parts are coated, such as fasteners, a bulk handling process may be used.
- Curing: After spraying each layer on the prepared surface, the part has to be cured in a convection oven at elevated temperatures (upto 4000C). We employ advanced automated control techniques in our ovens to ensure uniform overall curing.
- Outgoing Inspection: This step includes visual inspection to check for film continuity, smoothness. Film thickness tests and detection of voids or pinholes (‘holiday testing’) is done using precision testing equipment.